Saturday, October 30, 2010

Thirteen Reason Why by Jay Asher


Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher, is a fictional story about a teenager named Clay. One day, he finds a box of mysterious cassette tapes on his front porch. As he begins listening to them, he discovers that they were recorded by Hannah Baker, a girl from his school who had committed suicide only a few weeks earlier. "I hope you're ready, because I'm about to tell you the story of my life. More specifically, why my life ended. And if you're listening to these tapes, you're one of the reasons why" (7). There were seven tapes, and on them, she explains the thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Each person that is on the tapes are a reason, and made an impact on her life in some way. As Clay continues to listen to the tapes, he starts learning more and more about Hannah, who was his crush, and the situations she was dealing with.

Hannah informs her listeners that she expects them to pass along the tapes once they are done listening to them. "The rules are pretty simple. There are only two. Rule number one: You listen. Number two: You pass it on. Hopefully, neither one will be easy for you" (8). Her goal was to have everyone who "caused" her death to know how and why it did. Most of the people either started rumors about her, made lies about her, or didn't treat her in the right way. However, they never thought there would be such big consequences due to such little things. Clay himself doesn't know what he could've done to hurt her, and waits uneasily until it was the tape that shared his story. In the end, however, when all of the rumors, lies, and mistreatments added up, it was just too much for Hannah to handle.


1. The people on the tapes didn't do anything that they thought would lead to a suicide. Each person's actions snowballed into another's, and their end result was what made Hannah take her own life. Do you think that it is fair that Hannah blamed these people for her suicide? Why or why not?
2. If you were in Clay's position and were partially blamed for a death, how would you handle it? Would you believe it was truely your fault? Would you pass the tapes on, or end them so that the other's didn't have to feel the blame, too?

10 comments:

Laura P 7-8 said...

1.) I do believe that Hannah was a tad out of line directly blaming those people for her death. It's not like their intentions were to cause her death, however their actions towards her were less than acceptable.

2.)If I was in Clay's position I would feel extremely guilty. I think that I would latch on to the fact that someone that i "caused" their death for the rest of my life. I believe that i would pass the tapes on because it would be respecting Hannah's orders.

Sydney S. 1-2 said...

@Laura: I agree with what you said. The people on the tapes didn't have intentions to cause her death, but as you said, what they did to her wasn't acceptable either. I also think I would do the same for question number two.

Sarah H 1-2 said...

What was her reason for blaming Clay? He had a crush on her, im curious to see what Hannah said about him that was one of the reasons for her to kill herself. But to your first question, I do not think it was right for Hannah to blame other people for her death. It was her own choice to take her life. No one has a perfect life and I know some are better than others, but I feel that if someone commits suicide they have no one to blame but themselves. They can easily solve life's commplications a different way.

Sydney S. 1-2 said...

@Sarah: Clay's story is a little confusing. But basically, they met up at a party. By this point, Hannah was already overwhelmed with everything in her life. Clay was a really nice kid, and they talked and laughed and he made her forget about her troubles for a little while. At the end of the party, they kissed, but then Hannah told him to leave. She pushed him away, but wanted him to read in-between the lines and come back for her. It seemed a little unfair.

Clay's story was a little less blaming then the others. She basically just apologized for pushing him away and out of her life, and regretting that she did so.

Sydney S. 1-2 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Leah K. 7-8 said...

I don't think it is fair that she blames these other people. Now that they know they were a factor that led to her death, they will feel guity the rest of their lives. She should have told someone and got help to help to discuss problems before she took her life.
I would feel very guilty to know that someone I knew thought that i had led to them killing themselves. I would pass the tapes on though because that is what Hannah would have wanted.

Hannah K. 1-2 said...

1. While some of the people Hannah named as contributing to her suicide did horrible things, and may deserve to feel guilty, Hannah could have been more aware that the individual and sometimes not malicious acts were mostly minor events.
2. I would pass on the tapes, mostly because Clay would have wanted to adhere to Hannah's wishes, and also because I may have felt that some of the people she mentioned may have been deserving of the guilt.

Miranda R. 7-8 said...

I don't believe it was fair for her to blame them for her death. All she left behind was blame and guilt. She should have gotten help when she was alive instead of giving up and throwing the blame on other people.

jessica b 1/2 said...

1.I do not think that it was fair for her to blame them. When you commit suicide it is your choice to do so.
2.I would feel terrible if someone thought i was a reason for them to commit suicide, although it is not entirely one persons fault. I would pass on the tapes because it would be honoring her wishes.

Mrs. Sherwood said...

Graded